Hockey and lacrosse players typically wear protective gloves during game play in order to prevent injuries to their hands. As such, much attention is given to the design and construction of the gloves in order to provide an appropriate level of protection and comfort.
In a traditional glove construction, the dorsal portion comprises a plurality of distinct dorsal protectors (padding elements enclosed in separate pockets) for protecting the dorsal side of the player's hand and that are separated by a plurality of gaps, spaces, grooves, channels or flexion zones. The dorsal portion often includes distinct dorsal protectors of different shapes which are stitched beside one another to cover the entirety of the dorsal side of the player's hand. Each of the padding elements is contained within a respective pocket. The dorsal protectors are thus slightly spaced apart in order to provide flexibility to the dorsal portion of the glove. By virtue of the plurality of distinct dorsal protectors and plurality of flexion zones, the traditional glove therefore permits a level of flexibility while also providing protection.
However, it is understood that providing a plurality of dorsal protectors involves a plurality of components and manufacturing steps, because for each dorsal protector, a pocket enclosing a padding element must be stitched to the dorsal sheet. As such, there is a need in the industry for a hockey or lacrosse glove which is less costly to manufacture while still providing a suitable level of protection and flexion to the player's hand. Thus, it is a feature to produce gloves that provide flexibility, comfort and protection and to produce gloves that reduce design and production costs, that are less complex in design, and that have fewer components and/or require less manufacturing steps.